Councils get cash to stop ‘beds in sheds’

Dodgy landlords renting out “beds in sheds” in London are to be targeted with more raids under a fresh crackdown.

Housing minister Mark Prisk announced an extra £800,000 for four town halls in the capital to step up action against unscrupulous landlords who often exploit immigrants by renting out accommodation in shocking condition.

Mr Prisk, who recently went on a dawn raid with police, Border Agency and council officers on a suspected “beds in sheds” property in Ealing which led to 17 arrests, said: “I’ve seen for myself the squalid, unsafe and often illegal accommodation that vulnerable people are being forced to pay extortionate rates to live in.”

Whitehall said that illegal immigrants caught during raids would be offered the chance to leave Britain voluntarily or face deportation.